Saying they were going to Atlanta as a unified Illinois Democratic Party delegation, representatives from the campaigns of Rev. Jesse Jackson and U.S. Sen. Paul Simon agreed Saturday on a slate of 60 at-large delegates to the national presidential nominating convention.
But Jackson campaign officials, who had earlier demanded Simon`s official withdrawal as a presidential candidate, said they would immediately begin trying to convert Simon delegates into backers of Illinois` second favorite-son candidate.
In fact, said Leon Finney, Jackson`s Illinois campaign director, some of the Simon delegates selected Saturday will support Jackson on the first ballot at the Atlanta convention in July.
”Some will be with Jesse Jackson on the first ballot as well as on the second ballot,” Finney said. ”No candidate is going to concede anything. We`re all going to be lobbying for those delegates-the committeds, the uncommitteds and the superdelegates-and that starts right now.”
The lobbying certainly would intensify should Simon officially withdraw.
Illinois` delegation-187 men and women-has no legal obligation to support the candidate to whom the delegates are pledged, said Sen. Vince Demuzio (D., Carlinville), chairman of the Illinois Democratic Party.
”They can vote for whomever they want,” Demuzio said. ”While they have a moral obligation, I think, to vote for the candidate to which they were pledged, I think for the most part they likely will be free agents when we arrive there.”
The intraparty bickering that has boiled since Simon suspended his presidential campaign last month was not openly evident Saturday as the state party approved the selection of at-large delegates by acclamation.
”It became very clear that they were interested, as we were, in doing this in a unified way, and doing it in a manner that was peaceful and harmonious and in the best interest of the Democratic Party,” Demuzio said.
The party officials chose 47 delegates pledged to Simon and 13 pledged to Jackson, as well as 20 alternate delegates, all apportioned on the results of the election of 113 pledged delegates at the March primary election.
The 60 were chosen from more than 530 applications. Had Simon officially withdrawn, all 60 delegates would have gone to Jackson.
Among the elected officials pledged to Simon are Atty. Gen. Neil Hartigan, Treasurer Jerry Cosentino, House Speaker Michael Madigan (D., Chicago), Chicago Treasurer Cecil Partee and Cook County Assessor Thomas Hynes. Other Simon delegates ratified by the party are James Collins, president of the Chicago Urban League, and Robert Gibson, president of the Illinois AFL-CIO.
Jackson`s delegates include Mayor Eugene Sawyer, State Sen. Howard Brookins (D., Chicago) and State Rep. Carol Moseley Braun (D., Chicago).
”We stand four-square behind this slate,” Finney said. ”We are confident that the unity slate will support Jesse Jackson in instances, and also confident they will support Paul Simon. We have reviewed every name on the slate, and we`re comfortable.”
